our story

 
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Our Mission

Alisa’s Wish Child and Youth Advocacy Centre is a community response that facilitates a compassionate, coordinated approach to the prevention, identification, prosecution, and treatment of abuse involving children and youth.

 

who is alisa?

Alisa is one child abuse survivor whose name represents the many child and youth victims in our community. Her wish? That all young people in Ridge Meadows receive the best support possible during the worst time of their lives.

Before our Centre became a reality, Ridge Meadows children like Alisa --who experienced or witnessed abuse--typically ended up at the police station. Victims and their families had to navigate their way through a maze of disconnected support services in addition to the nightmare of the abuse itself. They were shuffled around from office to office, from building to building, from police officers and doctors to social workers, counsellors and victim services workers.

There had to be a better way.

 
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our evolution

2010 ~ The Department of Justice Canada announces funding for Child Advocacy Centres across the country

2011 ~ Feasibility study

2012 ~ Ridge Meadows CYAC Task Force formed

2012 ~ Pilot Project funding is received from the Federal Department of Justice’s Policy Centre for Victim Issues

2012 ~ Civil Forfeiture funding for coordination is received from the province of BC

2013 ~ First on-site cases come through the doors in July 2013

2016 ~ Alisa’s Wish Child and Youth Advocacy Centre fully becomes a program with our unique collaboration of Multi- Disciplinary partners

2017 ~ Moved to second location; embedded Community Based Victim Service staff along with our Child Youth Advocate

2018 ~ Offered first Caregiver Support Group to support parents/caregivers of our child/youth clients coming through the Centre.

2018 ~ Began on-site counselling of clients through our CYAC Community Partner, ACT 2

 We continue to build capacity on site and are fortunate to continue to operate to current day as a result of the  funding afforded by the Department of Justice Ottawa and the Province of BC  Civil Forfeiture grants; as well as donations from private donors, local businesses and interested citizens.

Our hopes for the future include further co-location of services, expansion of volunteer corps for awareness-raising of the Centre, developing collaborative trauma-informed medical examination and treatment within the local community, and expanding public education and information services to the surrounding communities.

Alisa’s Wish 2018-1019 Report